Hang tabs for supporting packages on hanging wires of retail display racks can be made of thick and tough resin material that does not require any reinforcing. Such a resin strip is expensive, however, and needs a formed hinge line to be flexible enough to fold flat against a package, for shipping.
Hang tabs can also be made of a thinner and less expensive resin strip, but this requires a reinforcing layer in the hanging region of the tab. Such reinforcing has been done by adhering a reinforcing band to the reinforced region of the tab strip, before the tabs are die cut. This requires, besides the reinforcing band, an adhesive layer on the reinforcing band and a wasted liner strip covering that adhesive layer.
I have discovered a way of using a portion of the liner for a hang tab strip for reinforcing the hanging region of the tabs, while the remainder of the liner releasably carries the tabs. Since the liner is otherwise wasted, using a portion of it to reinforce the hanging region of the tabs economizes on material and makes my liner reinforced hang tabs cost effective. Although my invention requires a specially prepared supply web, liner reinforced hang tabs can be die cut from this at high speed to form reliably reinforced hang tabs releasably carried on a portion of the liner strip.